It was in May 2005 at the Metropolitan Opera that
Mirella Freni, one of a great line of Italian sopranos, announced her
farewell to a long and distinguished career. That Gala event was cause
for triple celebration as it marked Freni’s seventieth birthday,
her fiftieth anniversary on the operatic stage and forty years with
the Metropolitan Opera. A genuine
prima donna, Freni’s
beautiful voice and accomplished vocal technique established her in
an elite class of 20th century sopranos. Thankfully she has left an
attractive recorded legacy in the form of both complete operas - in
particular Verdi and Puccini - and various collections.
She made her professional debut in 1955 aged nineteen at her hometown
of Modena in Italy playing Micaela in Bizet’s
Carmen. Still
in her thirties, Freni began to expand her roles beyond regular lyric-soprano
heroines giving notable performances in heavier parts such as Verdi's
Desdemona in
Otello, Elisabetta di Valois in
Don Carlo
and
Amelia in
Simon Boccanegra. The role I most associate
with Freni is the seamstress Mimì in
La bohème.
I have fond memories of her 1972 Berlin Mimì opposite Pavarotti’s
Rodolfo accompanied by the Berliner Philharmoniker under Karajan on
Decca 421 049-2. Most impressive of all was Freni’s remarkable
vocal resilience being able to maintain a vivid freshness throughout
a very long career.
The present three disc collection provides only very basic information
about the origin of the recordings. I have done a little Google research
to serve as a guide for those interested in this type of thing. Disc
one is an all-Puccini collection of arias and duets. This re-mastered
studio recording from 1974 is under the baton of Leone Magiera; who
was Freni’s first husband. The Italian tenor Franco Bonisolli
accompanies Freni in a number of the works. This material - including
a single track from the same session of Verdi’s
Otello
contained on disc three - seems to have been released in 2004 titled
Puccini & Verdi on the label Arts Archives 43008-2.
The second disc, consisting of highlights from Verdi’s
La traviata,
appears
to have been taken from a re-mastered 1973 Berlin studio recording played
by the Berlin State Opera Orchestra and Chorus under Lamberto Gardelli.
I understand it was made for a German TV programme and was released
in 2004 on the label Arts Archives 43031-2. In a number of works Freni
is once again joined by Bonisolli and also by Italian baritone Sesto
Bruscantini and German soprano Gudrun Schäfer.
Disc three - apart from a track from the Verdi
Otello set mentioned
above - looks like being the 1959 Munich material that was released
on a disc entitled
Mirella Freni:
The First Recitals 1959-1961
on Preiser PR93481. Freni is supported here by the Munich Radio Orchestra
under Ino Savini.
The recordings made in Hamburg and in Berlin had the most satisfying
sonics. Although there is nothing to worry about the 1959 Munich sound
on the third disc has a slightly metallic quality.
There is not a dud track in all of these three discs. Freni is in splendid
form displaying her bright, fluid and most attractive voice to wonderful
effect. I always enjoy Freni singing Puccini and with
Sì.
Mi chiamano Mimì from
La Boheme she is suitably girl-like.
Using very little vibrato, she slides smoothly with ease up to her high
register and the effect at the climax is truly poignant. Her duets with
Bonisolli are extremely successful with their voices complementing each
other splendidly, blending particularly well in the roles of Violetta
and Alfredo from Verdi’s
La Traviata. Another stunning
performance is Suzel’s aria
Son pochi fiori from Mascagni’s
L’Amico Fritz a fine example of the stylish Freni’s
talent for smooth
legato lines. Worthy of special note is Micaela’s
Qui dei contrabbandier /
Io dico, no, non son paurosa
from
Carmen - such lovely singing, so tender and affecting.
Whilst I greatly enjoyed this fine three disc collection on Acanta it
wouldn’t be my first choice for anyone wanting something that
showcases the great Freni. My prime recommendation is the BR Klassik
CD entitled
Mirella
Freni - Great Singers Live. Containing ten tracks the material
was taken from excellent radio recordings that Freni, in most sensational
voice, recorded with the Munich Radio Symphony Orchestra at a series
of ‘Sunday Concerts’ broadcast live from Munich between
1971 and 1983. Opera lovers could do worse than obtain both this Acanta
set and the live BR Klassik issue.
Michael Cookson
Complete programme listing:
CD 1:
Giacomo PUCCINI (1858-1924)
Gianni Schicchi
1. O mio babbino caro [2:22]
2. Lauretta mia [1:24]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Rinuccio)
Turandot
3. Signor ascolta [2:22]
4. Tu che di gel sei cinta [2:12]
Manon Lescaut
5. In quelle trine morbide [2:33]
6. Tu, tu amore tu [8:07]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Des Grieux)
La Boheme
7. Mi chiamano Mimì [5:03]
8. O soave fanciulla [3:49]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Rodolfo)
Madame Butterfly
9. Un bel dì vedremo [4:16]
10. Bimba dagli occhi pieni di malia [10:31]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Pinkerton)
Hamburg State Orchestra/Leone Magiera
rec. 1974, Hamburg, Germany
CD 2:
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
La Traviata
1. Libiamo, libiamo ne’lieti calici [3:21]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Alfredo), Chorus
2. Che è ciò / Und ì felice, eterea [6:00]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Alfredo), Ensemble
3. È strano, è strano!/Ah, fors’ é lui che
l’anima/ Follie! Follie! Delirio vano à questo! / Sempre
libera [9:29]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Alfredo),
4. Madamigella Valéry / Pura siccome un angelo / Non sapete quale
affetto vivo / Un dì, quando le veneri / Ah, dite alla giovine
/ Morrò! Morrò! [19:18]
Sesto Bruscantini, baritone (Giorgio Germont)
5. Teneste la promessa / Addio del passato [4:53]
6. Signora! ... Che t’accadde? / Parigi, o cara [5:48]
Gudrun Schäfer, soprano (Annina), Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Alfredo)
Berlin State Opera Orchestra and Chorus/Lamberto Gardelli
rec. 1973, Berlin, Germany
CD 3:
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
Falstaff
1. Sul fil d’un soffio etesio [4:09]
Munich Radio Orchestra/Ino Savini
rec. 1959 Munich, Germany
Otello
2. Gia nella notte densa [10:06]
Franco Bonisolli, tenor (Otello)
Hamburg State Orchestra/Leone Magiera
rec. 1974 Hamburg, Germany
Vincenzo BELLINI (1801-1835)
La Sonnambula
3. Ah! Se una volta sola [11:13]
I Capuletti e i Montecchi
4. Eccomi in lieta vesta [10:15]
Pietro MASCAGNI (1863-1945)
L’Amico Fritz
5. Son pochi fiori [3:28]
Giacomo PUCCINI (1858-1924)
Suor Angelica
6. Senza mamma [4:37]
Georges BIZET (1838-1875)
Carmen
7. Qui dei contrabbandier / Io dico, no, non son paurosa [7:06]
Munich Radio Orchestra/Ino Savini
rec. 1959, Munich, Germany
